PBDE Testing

Contact: Matt Geiger, Interim Section Manager; 517-335-9490
PBDEs, or polybrominated diphenyl ethers, are a class of halogenated flame retardants that have been widely used since the late 1970s.

PBDEs were introduced after the closely related polybrominated biphenyl flame retardants (PBBs) were banned in the mid-1970s following a 1973 incident in Michigan in which FlameMaster FF-1 was accidentally mixed with animal feed. That accident led to widespread contamination and health problems for thousands of Michigan residents.